INDIANA, Pa. – One of the best season's in IUP men's basketball program history came to a premature end Sunday night as the Crimson Hawks lost to Mercyhurst 75-65 in the semifinals of the 2019 NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Championships at the Kovalchick Complex.
Fourth seed Mercyhurst (25-6) will play second seed West Liberty (28-4) for the regional championship Tuesday at 7 p.m.
The Lakers started hot with three 3-pointers in the first three minutes. They built a lead of double-figures at 15-4 less than seven minutes into the first half and led by as many as 14 points with 2 minutes to go before the break.
The Crimson Hawks cut into that deficit in the final minutes with a 7-2 run, capped by a 3-pointer by
Chucky Humphries at the buzzer as they went into the locker room trailing 32-23.
A jumper by senior guard
Dante Lombardi early in the second half made it an 8-point game at 34-26. But that was as close as IUP would get as Mercyhurst kept its lead in double-figures the remainder of the night.
After not hitting from deep in the first half, the Crimson Hawks made five 3-pointers in the second frame to keep up with the Lakers. But Mercyhurst grabbed timely rebounds and took advantage of late fouls by hitting 18-of-24 from the foul line in the second half to keep IUP from completely climbing back in.
Lombardi finished with a team-high 25 points, while junior guard
Malik Miller added 15 and senior forward
Jacobo Diaz grabbed 11 rebounds.
IUP had a 41-to-34 advantage on the glass but turned the ball over 12 times compared to Mercyhurst's six giveaways.
The end of a great season
The Crimson Hawks finished the 2018-19 season as the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) tournament champions, the PSAC Western Division regular season champions, and with a 30-3 overall record.
It marked the 10th PSAC championship in IUP, including fourth under head coach
Joe Lombardi (2010, 2011, 2013, 2019). IUP has also won nine of the last 10 regular season division crowns and 16 all-time.
It's just the third 30-win season in program history, all in the last 10 seasons under Lombardi. It's the sixth 30-win campaign in PSAC history, with East Stroudsburg (2013-14), Gannon (2008-09) and Cal U (1991-92) picking up the other three.
The Crimson Hawks held onto the No. 2 ranking in Division II for the last four weeks and stayed in the top 10 of the coaches' top 25 all season long.
Diaz and Lombardi wrap up their careers
The loss also brings to a close the IUP careers of forward
Jacobo Diaz and guard
Dante Lombardi, two of the most accomplished players in program history.
A two-time PSAC West Athlete of the Year, Diaz finishes his career second in IUP history with 1,747 points and 1,105 rebounds. His 52.1 field goal percentage, 77.9 free throw percentage and 176 steals are also among the best numbers in program history.
Lombardi is IUP's all-time assist leader with 567 while his 273 3-pointers are the third most. This year he broke the school's single season 3-point record with 106, tying the single game record of eight against East Stroudsburg. He was a four-time All-PSAC honoree.
Notes
IUP earned the No. 1 seed and hosting responsibilities for the Atlantic Region Championships … Mercyhurst earned the No. 4 seed … The Crimson Hawks finished the year with a 19-2 mark at home, setting the record for most home wins in single season program history … This marked the first regional tournament hosted by IUP since 2010 … IUP was making its ninth appearance in the NCAA tournament under Lombardi in his 13 seasons as head coach … Lombardi has a career 18-9 (.667) record in NCAA tournament games with two regional titles and two national runner-up finishes … IUP is 31-16 (.660) in NCAA tournament play.
Follow
For up-to-date information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP Men's Basketball on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUP_MBB.
